/ / / _ // _//_ _// / / /_/ _/ / _/ / / // // /_____/__//___/ /_/ /___/ ______ _ _ ___ / _ // // // _ / / _// _ // // // / / __// _ // _ / / _// __ // _/// // /__/ /_//_//_/_\_\/___/_/ /_//_/\_\/___/ / // // _// _ // _ // __/ / _ // _// __ // ////__ / /_//_//___/_/ /_//___//____/ Issue number 2, Part I of II Table Of Contents (TOC): Part I Intro By: ic0n Oh DATU, my DATU By: Cuebiz How To Scam 800-COLLECT By: Bizurke LUCENT MERLIN VMS HACKING By: pulse state How to Find the Location of a Pay Phone By: Jenn Hacking Octel Voicemail Boxes By: ic0n Routers? (What are they and what do they do?) By: li0id AT&T Broadband Phone System By: Bizurke A legit redbox schematic (!) By: MaddJimBeam Part II The Low-Down on Radio Trunking Systems By: Bagel Cat3 color scheme conversion By: Captain B Theparty box By: Deepdish A Phreaks Guide To 1337 Text By: Reaver THE NEW MOTOROLA BIBLE By: Agent 5 Social Engineering Independent Telcos By: Xenocide OBTAINING SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS AND HENCE CREDIT CARDS By: Locutus126 Cordless Fone Phun By: Jackass __________________________________________ | \ | Intro \ | By: ic0n | | Contactic0n@phreaker.net | | / ------------------------------------------/ Welcome everyone to issue 2 of the lph zine. We have been working on other projects other than the zine so issue 3 will take some time to come out. The articals from it will be alot more in detail and longer and over all better. But we hope you enjoy are zine and hope to someday become something out useful to the 'underground world'. We hope you the readers someday also help use make this zine better but submiting info. to us. Now for the legal b.s. We LPH (13370 Phr34k0 H34d'5) take no responsibility for anything you learn from this zine, in any way, shape, or form. This is free speech, as under the USA's constitution, and does not violate ANY laws,in any way, shape, or form. We take NO responciblity for ANY damage you do to either yourself or others because of what you read or do because of this zine. This is for educational use only. Now let's get into the good stuff. __________________________________________ | \ | Oh DATU, my DATU \ | Compiled by: Cuebiz (Team Blaksheep) | | Contact: Fonez@ca.tc | | / ------------------------------------------/ ==========================Introduction------------ The Direct Access Test Unit, also known as DATU, has been somewhat the latest craze in the phreaking scene. There are tons of people getting/ sharing dialups, testing lines - trying to figure out how everything is put together. If you DID NOT know, DATU dialup's are used by linemen to test phone-lines for trouble; period. The Clone has written a REALLY GREAT file on the subject of using DATU, so I wont be discussing it; read his file, because it covers just about everything. In this file, I'd like to explain to you how everything is connected together just so you can kind of marvel at how much equipment is actually involved. Now, the following text is EXACTLY what I have in my DATU RT Users Guide; just so you know what I am talking about. /* Start DATU manual */ Harris Dracon Division The DATU RT Users Guide 1. Dial DATU Access number 2. Enter password 3. Dial seven digit subscriber number 4. DATU will respond "CONNECTED TO XXX-XXXX", "OK", or "CONNECTED TO XXX-XXXX, BUSY LINE, AUDIO MONITOR" Non pair gain ines proceed to step 7 Note: If busy line, DATU will not access the DC By-Pass Pair or the Metallic Acess Unit 5. SLC lines: if line is idle DATU will respond "PAIR GAIN LINE" followed by "Processing ("Processing" may be repeated for up to 25 seconds.) DATU will voice message: Single party line } (Good) Multi party line } Followed by Coin Line} "ENTER RT NUMBER" Channel Not Available (no/bad Channel test Results) PGTC Failure/By Pass If same recording is heard Pair Busy repeatedly, alert supervisor Pair Gain System Alarm (Alert Supervisor) 6. If good/bad Channel test results, enter the RT number dial "*" to end ("**" toggles on or off with Alpha mode). Enter Pair Number, dial "*" to end. Dial "0 *" to use existing DC TEST Pair. DATU will connect to the By-Pass Pair or call the Metallic Access Unit in the RT, except when By-Pass is busy or Pair Gain system is in Alarm. 7. LINE PREPERATION FUNCTION DIAL CODES: 2 = Audio Monitor 33 = Short Tip and Ring to ground 37 = Short Ring to ground (Tip open) 38 = Short Tip to ground (Ring open) 44 = High Level Tone on Tip and Ring 47 = High Level Tone on Ring (Tip grounded) 48 = High Level Tone on Tip (Ring grounded) 5 = Low Level Tone 6 = Open Line 7 = Short Line (Tip to Ring Short) 9 = Permanent Signal Release # = New Subscriber Line## = Force Disconnect * = Continue line preparation function after disconnect (system programmable from 1 to 99 minutes); enter number of minutes after "*"Single Line Access: 1. Dial the DATU access number 2. Enter the user password 3. Enter the "*" and subscriber number for non-pair gain lines or Enter "**" and subscriber's number for pair gain lines and then enter RT number. Dial "*" to end. Enter Pair Number. Dial "*" to end. 4. Enter function desired 5. Enter number of minutes to apply condition 6. Hand up and wait 30 seconds for DATU to access and condition line, (90 seconds for RT connection). Alpha Character Codes: [space]=11 A=21 F=33 K=52 P=71 U=82 Z=94 -=12 B=22 G=41 L=53 Q=74 V=83 ,=13 C=23 H=42 M=61 R=72 W=91 -=14 D=31 I=43 N=62 S=73 X=92 /=15 E=32 J=51 Q=63 T=81 Y=93 /* End DATU manual */ Acronym help: SLC = Subscriber Line Carrier RT = Remote Terminal PGTC = Pair Gain Test Controller The Diagram You should at least have a clue of what you've just read. Now, what really happens when you connect onto DATU? It seems that you dial into DATU – it picks up - you enter the code - you enter a line number - DATU grabs it – and you test the line, right? Here's how everything is ACTUALLY stacked together. Please don't mind my sloppy ASCII art diagram:( You ) : : <--- POTS Line : CENTRAL OFFICE : +------- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ : | | : | +----------+ +-----------+ +-------+ +------------------- --------------+ : | | | | | | Pair | | +--------------+ | +----|-| |------------: :-| Gain |--:-- --------------:No Test Trunk-: | | | | | Pair | | Test | | +--------------+ | | | DATU RT | | Gain | |Control| | Switch | | | | | | Applique | +-------+ | (ESS5, GTD5-EAX, etc) | | | | | | | | | | | |+--------+| | | | | | | || modem ||---------+ | | +---:-----X +--------+ | | |+--------+| : | | | | : : | | +----------+ : +-----------+ | | : : | | : | | : : | | +-----------------------+ | : : | | ^Modem POTS Line^ | : : | | | : : | | +-----:-- --------------:----------+ | | | | | +-----------+----------------+--------+ | | | : : | | | Central Office Terminal ---> | [ Channel Unit] [Channel Unit] | | | | : : | | | | +-----+ : : | | | | | | : : | | | | | MUX |---+ : | | | | | :--------------------+ | | | | +--+--+ | | | | : | | | +----:--------------------------------+ | +------------------------------ -------------------:----------------------------------+ * * NOTE: MUX = Multiplexer * * Cable/Satellite ---> * * * * REMOTE TERMINAL *+------------------- --------------------------------------+----------------------+| : || +--------- ----------------+ || | MUX (Multiplexer) | || +------ -------------------+ || : : || [ Channel Unit] [ Channel Unit ] : : || : : : : : : || : : : : : : || : : : : : : || : : : :+------------ --+ : || : : : : || : :+---------:------------------------------ --: || : : || +-----------+-----------+ : <--- POTS Line || | Channel Test Unit | : || +-----------------------+ : || : : : ||POTS Line -> : : : || : : : || : : :...............+ || : : : || : : +-------------------------+ || : : | : Metallic | || : : | +-------+ Access | || : +------------------: | Modem | Unit | || : | +-------+ | || : +-------------------------+ || : |+-------------+---------------------------------------------------------------- --+ : : : <- Still a POTS Line : : ( Line Being Tested )The above Diagram taken from the Phone Punx Magazine figuire1.gif; I just converted it for your ASCII art viewing pleasures. Conclusion---------- That's it! I know that this file kind of sucks because of its length, but the diagram pretty much says it all. If there are any comments, complaints, etc; send them to me at Fonez@ca.tc. _______________________________ | \ | How To Scam 800-COLLECT \ | By: Bizurke | | contact: Bizurke@qwest.net | | / |-----------------------------/ Ok we've all wondered how you could call up 1 800 COLLECT and get a free call out of them. So I'll explain the details as they were given to me from an ex 800 collect operator. Goal: To attain a courtesy call from an op by identifying yourself as another MCI employee. Equipment: Pay phone or any op diverted phone. Ok, first you want to call them up and when you get to the prompt just wait for an op or say "operator" as soon as u have a chance and you will be directed to an op. Op: "Thank you for calling 1-800-collect can I help you?" Phreak: "Hi my name is (fake name goes here) I'm with MCI, Can I please have your OP I.D. Number? (write this down) op: "Ok my op id is blah blah blah phreak: Alright, now can I please have your console or station number? (write this down too) op: "My console numner is blah blah" phreak: "Alright and can you please tell me what is writtien in your notepad field" (when they give you this repeat it back to them as if your taking notes) op: ok it says blah blah blah Alright, now here comes the fun part. This is what I usually do. phreak: "ok the reason that I'm calling your center is that we've been receiving reports of a problem with our courtesy calls to the (area code of place you calling) area code. I'm going to need to execute a test call to one of our centers in that area code. Are you ready? Okay, the number is (number goes here). Thanks you (use ops name) I hope we can get this fixed soon. (Now you can say what u want, get crafty, this is where you learn social engineering, Don't hesitate to call over and over again until you get it down. These ops are actually pretty smart but you can do I know cause I've done it 100's of times.)) NEXT- RING RING RING u just screwed MCI rejoice. _______________________________________ | \ | LUCENT MERLIN VMS HACKING \ | By: pulse state | | Contact: personaljesus@mediaone.net | | / |--------------------------------------/ AT&T, a few years ago, used to create a line of telecommunications products. One of those products was called Merlin. It was a voice mail system, designed to complement AT&T's office phone systems. Lucent Technologies split from AT&T a while back, and thus the Merlin system started to be made and supported by Lucent. In this file, I'll refer to the system as either Merlin, or Lucent Merlin. Hacking it is very simple, provided you know what you're doing. I will be referring to Ext's and Box's. Ext's are extensions that may or may not have associated boxes. Box's are boxes with no associated extension. There are two different default configurations on which Merlin can be set up. The first one is where the voice mail box numbers are two digits, and between 10 and 69 (usually between 10 and 19). This one is not usually used - in fact, I've never met a Merlin system set up this way. The second one is much more popular. It is where the VMB's are in the 100 block - that is, they can be numbered 100-199. I will, of course, go into great detail on this configuration, as it is the one that most people who run Merlin, use. On a fairly large Merlin setup, you may encounter boxes higher than 199 -- the system can accept expansion cards, to provide boxes all the way up to 699. Voice Mail Access is at Ext 770, but you won't be needing this unless you're hacking a Merlin out from the inside (which I've had the pleasure of doing). Ext 100 is usually the Administrator account. Box 9999 is always the General Mailbox. Box 9998 is almost always the Trouble Mailbox. I'm trying to keep this file in respect to hacking the Merlin system, not as a complete overview of the entire system. I'll do that some other time... Anyway, here are some steps to find ownable VMB's on Merlin: 1. Call up the main VMS number for the corporation. 2. You may hear an operator. If you do, hang up and forget it -- you need a box that's going to be available all the time. But, if you hear a greeting, hit *7 to get to the VMS login. 3. "Welcome to Merlin Mail. Please enter extension, and pound sign." Do what it says. 4. "Enter password, and pound sign." Enter a default password (it is always 1234 on Merlin), and a pound sign. 5. If you get an error, move on, d00d -- there are always more ownable VMB's on any given system. If you get in, you'll know because it'll let you know if you have any messages waiting. 6. Here's what you can do when you're in a VMB: 1 - Record messages (don't ever do this unless you want to piss someone off, or the box is vacant) 2 - Get messages (explained in detail below) 3 - Administer name or greeting (again, don't fuck with this unless the box is vacant) 5 - Change password (if it's vacant, or it's not vacant and you don't give a fuck if the system gets preventative maintenance done on it, then use this, otherwise don't use this) *T - (*8) Transfer to another extension (good for VMB hopping) The Get Messages Menu (option 2) 0 - Listen to message *D - (*3) Delete message (don't use this!) # - Skip message (can also be done when listening to message, in fact, I highly recommend skipping all messages if you're in a VMB someone else already uses, otherwise they'll wonder why they never get notification on new messages) *# - Return to main menu The Administer Name Or Greeting Menu (option 3) NOTE: Don't ever use this unless you're positively sure no one has the VMB! 1 - Administer your greeting 2 - Administer your name OK, now that you know what to look for, how to get into a VMB on Merlin, and what to do once you're in there, here are some tips. They're pretty much the same ones you'll read in other VMB/VMS hacking files, but some people are morons and skip over them... Anyway, don't change anything about a VMB that someone else has. You can listen to their messages, but remember to skip over them -- otherwise they get marked as being read. Don't change the password or the greeting or anything, unless you know that no one ever uses the box. Also, don't EVER take over the Trouble or General Mailboxes -- I mean, you can hack into them, but don't change anything, as it will trigger preventative maintenance when the Administrator finds out he can no longer access the General Mailbox, and it says "Hey d00dZ, leave me a message you l33t hax0rZ!" when he calls it. That's pretty much it on this system. As you can see, once you find a Merlin, it's pretty easy to get into quite a few boxes on it. _________________________________________ | \ |How to Find the Location of a Pay Phone \ |By Jenn | |Contact: twpyhr@mindspring.com | | / |---------------------------------------/ 1. Call the payphone. Ask a passerby. Or ask for [random name]. They will probably inform you that you've called a payphone. Act confused and say something like "Oh I did? Where is this payphone?" 2. Look for the number in one of the online payphone directories. a. Payphone Directory http://www.payphone-directory.org/ Pay phone numbers in the United States, Canada, the UK and Germany b. Payphone Project http://www.payphone-project.com/ Payphone numbers from all around the world and interesting locations c. Geep's New Pay Phone List http://www.geep.net/paydata/ Pay phone numbers old and new from Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming and neighboring states. d. Comox Valley Pay Phones http://tnsf.ca/cv.payphones/ Pay phone numbers in the Comox Valley area of British Columbia in Canada. e. Visual Pay Phone Directory http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ridge/8257/index.htm Pay phone numbers Bakersfield, CA. 3. To find the general geographic location, use these sites: a. The Web Page You Have Reached's Area Code, Prefix, CO Location and Telco Lists http://6464.adahost.com/filesacpreloctel.html b. Telephone Prefix Locator http://www.thedirectory.org/pref/ c. DSL Reports CO Finder http://www.dslreports.com/coinfo/ d. CO Finder http://www.stuffsoftware.com 4. Search for the phone number (with the area code) in a search engine. a. Google http://www.google.com b. Dogpile http://www.dogpile.com ____________________________________ | \ | Hacking Octel Voicemail Boxes \ | by: ic0n | | Contact: ic0n@phreaker.net | | / |-----------------------------------/ Okay I think the Octel voicemail boxes are one of the best you can find. These tons of shit you can do when you get one of these boxes. You can record a 3-10 min greeting. Making Distributions list and on some systems make up to 3 guest boxes that have there own passcodes! To login to these systems you press one of the following # and if it beeps at you press * then # (pound). On most systems they will also tell you how many digit the boxes are (How nice of them) Finding a box: Okay let's say the system has 4 digit boxes, start with 999 and give it a sec to do anything if it keeps waiting (then you know there a box in the 999x area do to the fact there was a problem in there system witch helps us phr34k'5 out)press 9 again if that was a valid box then it will play the recorded name (If this box works chances are this will be a admin box) and work you way down so on. When you come accessed a box that's like 'welcome to your voicemail box please enter you temp. password you know you found a box that's not in use. Write that box down, and try to find more of them boxes. If you enter 3 invalid boxes they system will hang up on you. But say you entered 2 invailed boxes then entered a valid box followed by * (star) it will bring you back to the login prompt. Hacking the boxes: Now this is where the fun in the whole thing comes into play (not Really but it's easy) go back to your notes you took on them boxes that where not in use and try these default passwords 1234 (on all systems) 9999 (on all systems) Box Number (on all systems) last 4 of box number (on 7 digit systems) last 7 of box number (on 10 digit systems) Main Menu * To Review Messages Press 1 * To send messages Press 2 * To locate messages Press 3 * Personal options Press 4 * Restart Press 5 * Applications Press 6 To Exit hit the * key at any menu I will now review each of these sections one at a time as they branch out into multiple other options, options marked by an (*) are unprompted options (no voice prompt). Use the * key to back out of any menu at anytime. Reviewing Messages ( Option 1) * To hear unheard voice messages Press 1 * To hear all voice messages including heard and skipped Press 2 * For fax messages (most Octel VMB disable this) Press 3 o Unheard Fax(*) press 1 o Archived Fax (*) Press 2 o Print All unprinted fax messages(*) press 4 Options 1, 2 and 3 allow you to hear your messages and bring you to the end-of-message options: * To print fax Press 2 o Primary destination press 1 o Alternate destination press 2 + Enter Fax destination number + Wait for confirmation + If correct hit # + If not correct hit * then re-enter fax number. o Current location press 3 o Send copy to non-subscriber press 4 * To replay Press 4 * To get envelope information Press 5 (obtain info about sender, date, etc) * Send copy with introduction Press 6 (allows you to send a copy with your own comments before) o To send a copy of a message with introduction o Record introduction then press # o To Send press # * Send copy Press 66 (remove introduction) * To erase Message Press 7 * To reply Press 8 * To reply by calling Press 88 (*) * To save message into archive Press 9 (for 10 days) Send Message (Option 2) To send a voice message: * Record Message * When finished press # * To replay the message press 1 * Use playback controls (end of this document) Destination options * Enter destination number or press # to spell name o Delivery Options (Press # to send, enter next destination and press * when finished) + Mark Message private press 1 + Mark message Urgent press 2 + Request Message confirmation press 3 + Confirm receipt press 1 + Notify of non-receipt press 2 + Mark message for future Delivery press 4 * AMIS networking hit #-# To use AMIS networking * Enter access phone number * Confirm then press # * Enter mailbox number * Confirm then press # * Press # to send o Press 1 to send to someone else on system o Press 2 to exit AMIS networking Locate Message (Option 3) * To locate Messages sent Press 1 o Enter mailbox number or press # to spell name * To locate Messages received press 2 o For a specific subscriber press 1 + Enter mailbox number or press # to spell name o For an outside caller press 2 + Enter mailbox number or press # to spell name Personal options (4) * To turn notification on/off Press 1 * For administrative options Press 2 o For general Options Press 1 + To change passwords Press 1 + For Personal Press 1 + For home (mailbox 93) press 2 + For guest 1 (mailbox 91) Press 3 + For guest 2 (mailbox 92) Press 4 + For Secretary Press 5 + etc... + To change Group Lists options Press 2 + Create List Press 1 + Edit List Press 2 + Delete List Press 3 + List Names press 4 + To change prompt Levels Press 3 + For standard Press 1 + For extended Press 2 + For rapid Press 3 + For date and time playback Press 4 + For application mailbox Press 6 o For Fax Press 3 + Setup/change primary faxprinting destination Press 1 + Auto print on/off Press 2 * To change Greeting Press 3 o For personal Greeting Press 1 + Standard Greeting Press 1 + Personal Greeting press 2 + For away from Phone message Press 1 + For on the phone message Press 2 o For extended absence message Press 2 o To change your Name Press 3 (name prompt when looking thru directory) * For notifications schedule Press 4 o 1st schedule Press 1 o 2nd schedule Press 2 o temporary Press 3 * For mailbox forwarding Press 5 o To Establish/change forwading destination Press 1 o To Cancel forwarding destination Press 2 * For security options Press 6 o To turn Access security on Press 1 o To turn access security off Press 2 o To hear tutorial Press 0 Playback Controls 1. rewinds 2. Pauses/restarts 3. skips Forward 4. Slower 5. Gives Envelope information 6. Faster 7. Normal Volume 8. Louder * Cancel 0 Help # Skip ________________________________________________ | \ | Routers? (What are they and what do they do?) \ | By: li0id | | Email:li0id@yahoo.com | | / |-----------------------------------------------/ While going through some IRC logs the other day I noticed a few things. One, in a nutshell, Breaknick and Mr. Peanut are complete llamas but, yet very hilarious at the same time. (Hey Breaknick, what happened to that long list of proxies you had:)?). Second, Reaver's birthday is on November 18 and, thirdly know one seems to know exactly what/how a router functions. As to my knowledge (which is very inadequate) know one expect Professionals have written anything on routers. So as you may have guessed it I am going to share my knowledge on this subject. What is a router? A router is a piece of equipment or, sometimes software in a computer which determines the first to last network point to which a packet(see my guide to internet terms to understand this and other internet word) should be directed to. How does a router work? For a router to work properly you need to have at least two networks hooked together. It decides which point to send each packet of information to based on its current knowledge of the state of the network its connected to. Routers are located at any juncture of networks including each internet point of presence. A router also creates a table of the available routes, their conditions, and the distance and cost of algorithms to determine the best route for a given packet. A simple analogy of how a router works would be a traffic officer at a busy intersection. Cars want to go through the intersection but, without the officer, there would be accidents. The officer takes control of the intersection, he controls when and where the cars can go, and makes sure no accidents occur. The office would be the router, each road which meets at the intersection would be one of the networks that's connected to the router, and the cars would be the packets. In Conclusion, a router is a device that direct a packet through routes on many different networks to a desired location. Now I hope that everyone has been benefited from this and knows what a router is and can do. (I would like to give credit to whom ever wrote the analogy on the officer at the intersection. Who ever you are send me your handdle and I'll be happy to credit your work.) ________________________________ | \ | AT&T Broadband Phone System \ | By: Bizurke | | Contact: Bizurke@qwest.net | | / |-------------------------------/ I have begun a study on the AT&T Broadband phone system. Created by AT&T laboratories in Cambridge. This system is currently being tested in the Cambridge labs building and may soon make its way to homes and business' in the U.K. as well as the U.S. There is no information as of yet from AT&T as to if this technology will be implemented to change phone systems around the world. All that is being said that thee current time is the systems capabilities. Hopefully some sort of public press release will be made soon. As of now the phone can not be purchased, but Cambridge's labs says that it may soon be available to business. What lies below is an outline of the system characteristics that I have gathered. Features: The broadband phone has a touch screen graphical user interface (GUI hereafter), the numbers everything you're used to on a phone will be part of this GUI. Using the GUI users can draw maps or whatever they want and send it to the person on the other side of the call. The GUI can also display internal company news, a browser, digital music juke box, web cams, photographs, data/fax, email, instant messaging and even games. Now none of these are on the phone itself they are all held by the central server. There will be more on the central server further in the article. Technology: Thin-client technology. Based on the VNC system which was created by AT&T laboratories Cambridge. VNC is a remote administration system that sends live feeds of a PC or X-windows desktop to a main server in which it can be viewed by whoever logs into it via a program or even a browser. With this technology it means that the broadband phone itself does not hold any information itself. It simply uses what is on its server and projects that on the phone GUI. Somewhat similar to a dummy workstation on a LAN, except for it doesn't hold an operating system or anything like it. It is just a terminal. The broadband phone does not need to plug into a traditional phone cord. It uses the SIP system, which is considered to be the next generation in voice, instant messaging and many other application communications. I researched SIP the best that I could and could only pull up small amounts of info without a $5,000 membership fee. My basic overview of SIP is an advanced high-speed voice over IP device/system that runs off of a type of server am not sure of. But I can assure it is something none of us are too familiar with, if at all. Using this SIP technology, users can send data along with voice simultaneously. Users could send pictures, play games or even view live camera feeds through the internet, all while talking. System configuration: The system consists of a central server, end user platforms (generally broad band phones) and an option gateway to the PSTN (I'm not sure what that is currently). Using the SIT and Thin-client technology means that almost every bit of software and information can be hosted on the central server. At this time most of the servers run on Linux but can be edited to run on a Solaris system, and easily edited to run on an NT system. Advantages: (as told by AT&T labs) Reliability: Since all the information is stored on the central server instead of the phone itself there is no possibility of a software failure. This also means that if a phone does get destroyed, plugging in a new phone will make it just as it was before. With no information lost this makes it risk free, Except for the cost of the phone itself, which I must say has not been released yet. Mobility: Since the information is held on the central server you can make your home phone act as your office phone and vice versa. An endless amount of versatility is available. You could combine your home, cell, and office phone into one phone that could be used at any broadband phone, a computer, or even a touch-screen in your car. Updating: There is no information stored on the end user platform therefore any and all information can be updated at one central location eliminating huge costs that are brought upon telcos each year. Making the system virtually never go out of date. Until a whole new system is comprised that is. Connection: As broadband is becoming more and more used worldwide tests are being done to figure out which platforms of connection shall be used for these systems end users to connect to the central server. At this point in time it supports xDSL, Cable modems, wireless, ISDN and testing with basic dial up service is near. In retrospect I believe that this system has many great qualities to it. It is the first system that can truly integrate communications as we know it. There are many positive aspects as well as the grim negative aspects. If this system were to be internationally implemented there would be mass confusion among people for a long time, including loss of jobs and whole companies going out of business. I do admit that it will open the doors to the future of communications, but at the same time it could ruin a whole economic part of the world. Eventually enough profit would be made to counter act this many times over but that does not get those poor peoples jobs back. Also doing this will eliminate phone phreaking as we know it, and will make hacker (the real ones) even more powerful. To be a phreak you would have to learn a lot of *nix networking and things of that nature witch up to date is not a necessary part of phreaking. I can't decide whether or not I would like this system to be implemented. But I do know I would like to get my hands on the system to give it a whirl. After writing this article I was researching some information on Microsoft and I ran across a document that refers to Microsoft's recent $5,000,000,000 investment into AT&T broadband for "future technologies". Now I cannot say that this is definite a part of the broadband phone project, but it would be smart of Gates to get a piece of it. _____________________________________ | \ | A legit redbox schematic \ | By: MaddJimBeam | | Contact: maddjimbeam@phreaker.net | | / |------------------------------------/ After looking this over, I realized I made a mistake. Instead of the pole on J1 being attached to R2 and D2, It needs to be attached to pins 4+8 of the 555 timer chip. Note: J1 is a momentary pushbutton/slide switch. It needs to be engaged for 5 seconds between each 'quarter', which is gotten by pressing J2 You can see my schematic at: http://members.aol.com/maddjimbeam/redbox.jpg